Ms Angela Fitzgerald:

I would like to respond to a question asked by Deputy Regina Doherty. I was party to some of the discussions regarding Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital that took place during the summer. I think the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation was seeking the opening of all beds at that hospital and at Louth County Hospital. In fact, it specifically referenced the potential for opening 12 beds at Louth County Hospital. Those beds are now being opened as part of what members will now see in their information packs. Although the Minister's announcement referred to eight beds in Drogheda, in fact 12 new beds are being provided in the modular unit, four beds are being provided in the surgical assessment unit and eight beds are being provided in the clinical decision unit. It is understandable that the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation was so concerned about the capacity issues. For most of this year, the big challenge we had was in attracting and retaining staff. The RCSI group has done very well to secure staff and those beds are all open. The requests of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation have been met. In fact, the driver of the beds at Louth County Hospital came from that.